


The Virgil Legacy

by stevegallacci



Category: Zootopia
Genre: Discussion of Death, minor bully confrontation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-11
Updated: 2018-05-23
Packaged: 2019-02-01 01:40:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12694404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stevegallacci/pseuds/stevegallacci
Summary: By coincidence, the name Virgil in the Hopps family ends up being connected with national service. (with a little oblique reference to Selaxes Red Tails and Wilde Skies) Done for November 11 in replacement for another story regarding (WWII) and remembered service.





	1. Chapter 1

Little Stuart was looking though one of the family albums, a massive volume for such a small kit, and found a very old photo of several of his ancestors, must have been prehistoric with such old fashion clothes. And one of them was in a funny suit, sort of like the cavalry suits in the westerns on TV. 

"Dad, who is that?"

"Oh my. That is your great great uncle Virgil." Dad looked at the old portrait, a cluster of Hopps of that generation, and in the mix the already elder bunny in his old uniform coat, already a half century on from the war that went with it. "He was a soldier way back when." 

"Really? I didn't know any bunny could be a soldier." 

"Oh yes. During the big war, a lot of bunnies joined the military. Not all became soldiers or actually fought, but there were a few. And it was another Virgil, your Grand Pop's Brother, who became a big hero back then."

The elder bunny found and opened another album and found a photo. And there was a picture of Grand Pop as a young buck with a similar bunny, though in a soldier suit. There a bunch of medals on his suit, but what caught Little Stuart's eye was his mutilated ears. "Oh! Dad! Did he get hurt in the war?" Pointing at that detail.

"I'm afraid he did." And Little Stuart noticed the sad voice, like when Teri didn't come back from the Hospital. That made him a little sad too, and he hugged his Dad. 

"Why did he go out and get hurt?"

"To stop some very bad beasts from hurting a lot of other mammals. They wanted to hurt just about everyone, even us here. So he went and stopped them, but got hurt a bit while doing it."

"Did you want to be a soldier?"

"Well, I was lucky, not much of any war to fight when I was younger, and someone has to say home and grow the food for everyone."

Little Stuart nodded sagely at that. "I can grow food too, or be a soldier." 

"With a little luck, you'll never have to worry about having to make that choice."

0000

Stuart still remembered that all those years later when his own Virgil told him of his plans.

"You really want to be a ZDF officer?" 

"Sure Dad. Judy is off at school, studying to become a cop. And if I want to go to the academy, I've got to start working for it now in high school." He gave his worried old bunny a hopeful look. 'Besides, I'm the Virgil of this generation."

Stu cringed at that. The Hopps tradition of recycling names through the generations was coming to bite him. Judy's namesake was a bit of a spitfire herself, and even he was named after one of the founders of the farm. But he had been reluctant to attach the name that seemed to go with soldiering to any of his own offspring. Not like there was a war on or anything that suggested he would be put in obvious harms way. 

"It can be a tough life, even in peacetime. And you'll likely be stationed way off somewhere." And that was his concern of the moment. It seemed like any one of his kits who left the 'Burrow took a bit of his heart with them. Even while he took pride in the character and accomplishments of all his issue, part of him lamented that they were grown and gone, not his little kits anymore. 

"The price we pay for our continued freedom and security." Said not too pompously. 

Stu made a face. "Sure, hit me in my patriotism and civic duty why don't you." He put a fatherly paw on his son's shoulder. "I have to admit I'd be worried for you, but if this is what you really want..." He let out a sad sigh, another kit slipping away. 

"I know, Dad." And gave him a hug.

0000

The Eleventh of November was always a crapshoot for the weather, though this year it was clear and dry, cold, but not miserable. 

Virgil was home on in-transit leave and there was an air of added solemnity to match the date. He was going off to a foreign trouble spot, part of a peacekeeping force. No great battle to save civilization itself, but to protect a small and obscure population in a far off land from fratricidal madness. 

There would be some fuss, flags and speeches at the Veteran's cemetery later that day. But Virgil was up early, not to be a part of that ostentation, but off in the corner of the Hopps land where generations now lay. 

Like many, he had avoided that place, other than to attend another dreaded addition, and felt a twinge of guilt in that. He and his were not ones to dwell on the past loss too much, but again, were loath to too easily forget. 

Most of the markers were simple things, a squared off stone, inscribed with some memory. A couple were more elaborate. Then there was the row of white marble things. Simple pieces provided by the Veteran's Bureau for all who served, in a design unchanged for more than a century. The Hopps had always insisted that theirs would always come home. Thankfully, most where for those who had passed in the fullness of years. So far, the name Virgil had been repeated only on that type. But there were other names that had abbreviated dates and place names, familiar or obscure.

At times like that, he couldn't help but think of the old CSN&Y song that he both loved and dreaded, 'find the cost....'

After a while he headed back towards the house, and found his father coming out to greet him. 

Stuart Hopps was not all that old, a hearty middle age buck, a bit thick in the middle and robust in limbs from a life of honest hard work. But in the moment, Virgil could also see a weary mammal who had been out to the plot too many times for more than just a visit. 

"Hi, Dad." Offered a hug. 

Stu said nothing but gave his son a desperately strong embrace. 

"Dad. You know I can't promise anything."

"But do your best." 

"To do my duty..."

They both smiled a bit at the old Ranger Scout pledge. 

"You'd better give your Mother some loving before you go."

"When have I ever not."

0000

It was at the diner where Stu sometimes dropped in for a cuppa and some chatter with his neighbors. A little idle talk. What to plant this year. Speculation on crop futures. Then he heard some angry noise across the room.

"And now they're wasting our taxes on these foreign interventions. Who cares about some beasts half way 'round the world?"

Glob, it was Calvin, always complaining about anything and everything. He'd actually gone on a tear once about how the sheriff had spent his bitterly surrendered taxes on a replacement head light for his cruiser. 

Stu rolled his eyes and got up. "So, Calvin. You don't have a problem with mothers and kits getting murdered, as long as it's somewhere else?"

"I never said that!" The scrawny Hare shot back. 

"That's what you implied. My Boy is over there right now, and that's exactly what he's been trying to stop." Stu had been getting regular updates and what Virgil had been describing had been heartbreaking. 

"Fah! Just stories, propaganda to keep us supporting that boondoggle."

Stu tried his best to remain calm, but his ears snapped back in anger. "So. You're calling Virgil a liar too?" 

The clueless Hare was unimpressed. "Folks will say anything to justify their position. What else could he say?" 

The atmosphere in the diner suddenly became electric with tension. 

Stu stood stock still for a moment, then sighed. "Calvin, I've known you long enough to know that trying to beat some sense into you just wouldn't work. Besides, it would give you the opportunity to make a new career out of siccing the law on me for the next octade or two." 

Stu turned to leave and felt a paw grab his shoulder. "You can't talk to me like that, Hopps!"

The shorter rabbit spun around and grabbed the taller hare by the front of his shirt and hoisted him bodily over his head. "You know, even touching me like that could be construed as a physical assault, and I'd be within my rights to kick your mangy tail across the county, purely in self-defense, you understand. So why don't you scrape together just a tad bit of common sense and watch your muzzle about my and mine. Understand?"

Stu set him back down and Calvin did have enough sense to not try anything. Moreover, the Hare could see he had no support there, with everyone giving him various flavors of the stink eye. He left without a word. 

Stu sat back down, waving off some supportive, even congratulatory comments. "No. That was some bad business all the way around. I know he's an idiot so his rants shouldn't have gotten a rise out of me to begin with." He stared into his cup, and he recalled all too well some of the daily horrors his son had recounted. 

"How IS your boy doing?" Jackie asked. 

Stu glanced over to his friend with a bit of a grimace. "He's surviving. But like I said, it really is a matter of saving mothers and kits from murder. Its like everyone has gone mad. Political parties, classes, tribes, even families, are all at each other's throats." 

Stu rubbed his face. "Early on, I was so worried about him and what he was doing with his life, more as a father, selfish for keeping his kit close. But now." He looked out over his friends and neighbors who now hung on his every word. "I still worry about his safety, but I'm also so proud that he's made the choice to do those noble things that we'd like to think we'd do, but never get that test."

There were knowing nods to that. 

Stu sat there with a small sad smile. He was proud of his son, that he had made such a choice. And it reminded and reinforced the pride he held for his daughter off in the big city. Maybe he'd done some small thing to make the world a better place with such kits after all.


	2. War Bunny

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Originally done for Armistice Day and a collection of Virtual Reality stories, it was rejected for the collection and the 'Virgil Legacy' written as a stand alone story for the day. Now coming up to Memorial Day, I thought I'd recycle the story here. As it doesn't exactly share the continuity with 'Red Tails and Wilde Skies' I've made no effort to connect any other Hopps veteran to the tale.

"So, what do you want to do this time?" 

Judy scowled; she had an idea but was reluctant to pursue it. But finally, "I'd been thinking of my great uncle Virgil. I knew he fought in the War, but no one has ever talked about him or what he did."

"I know of some old vets, the ones who did the most were usually the ones who talked about it the least." Nick pondered. "And considering how, 'unenthusiastic', you bunnies can be about real blood and guts violence, I can imagine it would be doubly so for him." 

Then Nick realized. "You're wondering what it might have been like?" As he waved at the couches. "My impression was that it was mostly miserable, the worst kind of waiting from something to happen then getting way too much of it when it does."

"I know." Judy sighed. "But I'm still curious." She wrung her paws. "Being a cop is to protect and serve, and, I guess, I'm wondering about an ultimate version of that might be like." 

Nick gave his beloved a look. "I know, while you can really get into the heat of the moment on a case, you really hate it when things get messy nasty. And any kind of realistic war sim they might have is not going to be some cartoonish first person shooter video game." 

"I realize that. But I need to know." Judy seemed determined, yet Nick could tell she wasn't looking forward to it, a dreaded dutifulness to her about this. Nick didn't know much about her Great Uncle, other than he'd served in the War, not so unique in those bad old days. And his current namesake was in the ZDF as an officer. But there was a conspicuous lack of discussion about any Hopps in national service. 

Bunnies could be so twitchy about things. No small part of the family's wariness over Judy's pursuit of law enforcement was the rabbity reluctance for physical confrontation with other mammals. How did they deal with the notion of a bunny becoming a combat solider?

But here they were at the Virtual Reality Arcade and it was clear Judy wanted a taste of what was likely going to be an all too realistic experience. 

When Judy explained her interest to Fitwik, he gave her a sadly understanding look. "No small number of beasts come in for some version of a sample of that. To get an idea of what 'we lucky few, we band of brothers' was really all about." He wrung his paws. "There are several modes, from video game slash movie action shooter to rather miserable all too realistic slog in the mud campaigns." 

Judy had done some research on the actions Virgil had been in and wanted to experience a version of that kind of situation, rather than a direct recreation of any specific historical battle. She had dates and locations to refer to and Fitwik consulted a terminal for details.

"I can do that. A generic landscape for the region, set with a disposition of troops typical for the time frame. As always, there will some subjective time compression, so you'll be in there for a while. And some short cuts for your integration into the setting. Any little lapses of period vernacular or military conduct or nomenclature on your part will be glossed over by the other characters and you'll get the occasional visual prompt to help you through any unfamiliar details that crop up." 

He ushered them to a different section of the arcade and a new and slightly different set of couches awaited. "These have an even more thorough physical experience, better kinesthetic and environmental impression. Though the system is still primarily direct cerebral communication, the couch will also provide some tactile and motor stimulation to the extremities." He hesitated with a somewhat wary expression. "The immersion will be more intense, physically. And as it is a combat simulation, that could include painful injury." 

"There's still a panic button, isn't there?" Nick was beginning to look like he was getting cold feet over the whole thing.

"Oh, very much so, of course."

Nick looked over at Judy, giving her a wane smile. "For better or worse." and gave her paw a little grip. 

"We'll be fine, you big kit." Judy gave him her best encouragement grin. 

"Oh, and by the way, given the situation, Nicholas will appear as a tall hare to the rest of the characters. Can't have him looking like one of the enemy in there."

And there they were, in the back of a deuce and a half rattling along a muddy country road, sad old snow patched fields to their left, and a wall of pine trees to their right was still not quite dawn on a very dreary winter morning. 

Both of them were bundled up in heavy woolen great coats, Nick's a bit short for his lanky form as a jack rabbit, Judy's a bit too long for her shorter than average height compared to the rest of the common rabbits in the truck bed with her. Small daypacks and ammo pouched belts kept them cinched up.

They were replacements in a veteran squad, all bunnies, part of a company being sent out to sweep an unsecured reach of territory to the north of the main action where they could hear as a grumble of artillery back behind them. An initial scouting had not found anything short of a lightly held village some miles to the east. But it was now important to make sure there were no surprises in the woods and discourage any attempts by the enemy to try to sneak a flanking force south. 

Most of the squad had been together from the initial invasion or part of the first round of replacements in the heavy fighting in those early days. As such they were all a bit taciturn, heading out on another miserable day in the war. Nick and Judy had the good sense of not trying to be too chummy, especially given the suspicious glances they got. 

"You're supposed to be not totally green, but until you've done some time in the shit with us, you're nothing but liabilities, dangerous ones that can get us all killed." Snarled the Sergeant. 

"Sergeant," Nick tried his best obsequious schmooze. "My buddy and I were decorated cops back in Zootopia City, so we know a bit about which end of a gun does the bang bang and how to play hide and seek with bad guys." 

"Fah!" The Sergeant sneered and then announced. "We got us a couple of flat foots with us this time!" To a chorus of derisive snorts and groans. "Them Biters aren't going to take kindly to getting tickets for littering."

Judy made a face. "We've already shot our fair share of trouble makers of all species back in the force. So we have not trouble with the killing end of the business." And she made a show of rechecking her rifle, a light carbine sized weapon. While the specifics were unfamiliar to her, it was similar enough to weapons she'd trained with to handle with confidence. 

Another rabbit, a PFC, piped up. "Hey, sounds like we finally got someone who can actually do the deed."

"Glob, yes. Nothing like having a kit freeze up when he actually has to pull the trigger on a Biter." Added another. 

Nick and Judy exchanged puzzled glances.

"Oh gosh yes. Half the green kits that we get here can't kill. Can't get over that emotional hump. That's what made the invasion so nasty. It was a winnowing, separating the killers from the victims as much as any combat action."

"You'd have thought the brass back home would have worked out some kind of training to get beyond that, but no such luck so far."

"Well, the war will be over by new years the way we're going, so we won't have to deal with that part for much longer." And there were a couple supportive chirps to that.

Nick and Judy both grimaced at that, expressions not lost on the Sergeant.

"Ah. You know better, don't ya?" He looked at the several hopeful faces with a disappointed scowl. "The Biters aren't going to roll over. Not by New Years for sure. We'll have to drag the last one out of his bunker in the capital before this war is done, and they'll happily see everything between here and there die before that can happen."

Things got quiet for a while until the truck came to a stop. The truck behind them had already stopped a hundred yards or so back and the troops were already out and getting ready to go into the woods. 

"We're going to spread out and advance to a road about a mile in. See if anyone is home." The Sergeant considered a moment. "Flat foots, you two are on the south end. Keep your interval and remember there are friendlies just beyond." He then pointed to one of the PFCs to be next in line to keep an eye on them. 

Judy insisted on being the end of the line. "If this is anything like the earlier sims, I'll have the better ears, even though you'd have us all beat by your appearance." Nick's Jack Rabbit appearance had ears half again longer than Judy's. 

"And you ought to have only the previous squad to your flank." Nick observed hopefully. He did not look happy. It was cold, there was still patches of snow everywhere, and wet, with the melting snow and a slight foggy drizzle. He gripped his rifle with a bit of dread. He was no fan of guns, or, as a city kit, walks in the woods. 

Seeing his dismay, Judy put her paw to him. "If this gets too much, you can pull the plug on it at any time." 

"I'll be okay. You just watch yourself." 

Then they were into it. Though the air was dead still, no chance of scents spreading around very far, the woods were not quiet. Dripping snowmelt and the occasional clatter of falling debris meant that any motion through the underbrush was largely masked. Good for them, but also meant they couldn't easily detect anyone else.

Fortunately, the scattered ground cover, mostly evergreen brush and dead ferns were about bunny head and shoulder high, so there was some fair level of concealment. As most of the enemy were larger species, they'd stand up over most of such. But not all, so they needed to be careful least they stumble upon a weasel patrol or some similar small beasts and need to run away.

The squad was in a wide skirmish line, with ten or more yards between each member. Each took careful steps, constantly glancing to each other for a paw signal if anyone detected anything. In the early dawn of a grey day in deep forest, it was dark, and there was a hint of fog, so even in those reaches of the woods with a bit of opening, visibility was still compromised. And so progress was slow, and with that a nerve wracking intensity of concentration. 

Judy's nose twitched furiously, and with frustration. She couldn't smell a thing. And all the drip and clatter of the trees made her hearing nearly useless. An elephant could be waltzing just beyond the next clump of dense brush and she wouldn't be able to tell. Well, she might feel the ground vibration, but there was just so much sound. 

And each minute seemed to drag on interminably. She knew the simulation could create the sensation of extended time passage, but her own heartbeat counted out the seconds to let her know that this anxiety-driven experience was all her. 

She glanced back at Nick. Even in his Jack Rabbit guise, she could tell he was having a miserable time. But he'd catch her eye and give her a wane smile of encouragement. Then she saw him flinch at something beyond her, and she automatically crouched down before looking out. 

Another twenty, maybe thirty yards on there were some Wolves. A nervous looking cluster of troops, trying to peer into the gloom directly in front of them rather than being spread out and searching in all directions. They were obviously trying to sniff their way along, so much so Judy could hear them even in the distance. And they were whispering to each other as well. Clearly an inexperienced little patrol of four. 

Judy glanced back to Nick who was reading his gun, and could just make out the next rabbit in line who was also preparing. She brought her weapon up, and as she flicked the safety, it seemed the tiny click caught the wolves ears as they all snapped around to seem to look directly at her.

Judy fired, a quick four round burst into the mass of them, as did Nick and the other rabbit. And just that quick, the four were down. In the dense woods, there was neither echo nor any follow on sound to the brief blasts. Judy leapt to the side to get new cover and waited. And waited. Anyone nearby now knew they were there. She heard Nick coming up behind her.

"Want to cover me?" He asked, indicating he was ready to check out he dead.

"No. I'll do it." Judy was determined to get through all that. Including the worst that war was about. She went forward, sidling along on three paws, keeping herself as low as possible short of crawling on her belly. 

The four wolves were all youngsters, half-grown cubs, their uniforms tragically/comically too big for them. The reek of blood and worse, the results of traumatic death, was heavy around them. They all still had looks of surprise, except for one, who had caught a bullet that had smashed most of his muzzle off.

They had fairly complete kits, belts and pouches and such, the typical items the enemy equipped their troops. Their guns, however, were ancient; old straight pull bolt-action rifles, likely dating from the last century. Judy pulled out and tossed the bolts away into the brush and drove the muzzles into the soggy ground. She saw that between them they carried four 'potato-smasher' grenades, and she collected them. One could never have enough grenades. 

As she was getting ready to leave, she heard someone approach. 

"Knock knock!" Judy whispered the call sign. 

"Who's there?" was the counter sign. 

"Come on in."

"Jeffries. Heard your ruckus." The rabbit Corporal grunted as he saw the dead. "We'll want you all to start to sweep more north, we'll be shifting up behind you. Still angle towards the road, so more north east." He gave the wolves a second look. "They're either desperate or sent these poor bastards out as a trip wire sacrifice. Either way, who's ever still out there knows we're coming."

Judy hand signaled the instructions to Nick and the PFC beyond, who passed it up the line. She caught up to Nick to pass off some of the grenades.

"You okay?" 

"I'll get by." 

Nick gave her a supportive little grip then they separated to regain their interval.

And they were at it again. 

Having made contact with the enemy made the tension even more acute. Rather than finding someone up and about, they were more likely going to be coming on a ready ambush. Minute after agonizing minute crept by with every wary step. Finally, the dark mass of foliage overhead began to lighten; they were approaching the edge of the woods. Instead of the abrupt edge they had entered. The trees thinned out, selectively cut some fifty yards into the stand. 

The squad held within the cover of the denser woods. Before them was the objective road, and a patchwork of logged off open ground and few acres of standing woods. There could be anything off in the dense cover beyond. Moreover, the land rose to the north and the woods were close on both sides of the road at the crest. The patch of trees on the other side up there, with the cleared land below, could be the perfect cover for an observation post that could cover the road south for miles. 

The squad pulled closer together, but not too close, each behind adjacent trees, but close enough to talk. 

"We'll likely have to sweep up to the ridge. Hiding in the woods for cover." The Sergeant pointed towards the separate stand at the crest. "They've got to have something up there waiting for us." He checked his watch. "The second company will be coming up shortly, at least that's the plan, and we'll be able to put together a heavier line going up." He didn't need to say that there were also likely enemy forces on their side of the road in the woods too.

"Flat foots." The Sergeant pointed at Nick and Judy. "You get perimeter watch." And he directed them to a small distance back into the denser woods. "Keep and eye out, both for Company B's squads and any Biter who might have gotten curious about earlier."

"You flat foots did okay back there." And Nick and Judy nodded in acknowledgement. They offered to share the grenades Judy had taken off the dead. 

The Sergeant reacted to seeing one of them. "That's a vintage piece. A left over from the last war. See the belt hook on the side?" Though the metal head of the weapon had been repainted, lacking any markings, it had a small curved meal strip on the side. Two of the others were the common M24s and the last was the newer model M43. "You said they had straight pull guns?"

Judy nodded.

"Yeah, likely reserve pieces from one of the occupied countries. The Axis scrounged up everything they could find, they even have a formal nomenclature for our carbines for their use, some alphabet soup model blah blah blah."

He placed Judy and Nick in a couple of good covered positions, not too close, but within sight of each other as well as keeping an eye on likely approaches.

Now that the intensity of the action so far was over, Judy now had time to notice how cold it really was. Though it was now full day, it was still awfully dark and grey, and there was now a small breath of a breeze, which added more chill to the already miserable conditions.

Rabbits tend to be grazers, constantly nibbling, and now after some hours and all the activity so far now found her famished. She checked her daypack, not sure what she'd find. Along with a first aid pouch and a few little tins of generic 'soup' and 'fruit', there were a couple of pressed alfalfa bars. 

They had the look and texture of pressboard, and didn't taste far off from that as well, but kept her teeth and belly occupied for the moment. 

She glanced over to Nick and held up her bar. He rolled his eyes and stuck out his tongue. Unless the simulation was giving him rabbity sensations for such, his foxy belly could deal with a feast or famine diet.

It didn't take long for signs of the second company to show up, though their character did not engender confidence. Instead of a cautious skirmish line, the squad that was to be their leap-frogging back up sauntered in as a tight single file and were prepared to walk out into the open. "Hey you guys, it took a while to find you. We'd been told you'd be due east." said one incautiously loud.

Nick waved to them to keep it down and the Sergeant rushed up to deal with them. "Be quiet and get back here you idiots! Its wide open out there." He hissed.

The other squad's sergeant bristled. "Hey! We were told the area was secure!"

"You were told wrong." The Sergeant shook his head. "We just shot a batch of Biters back there, and odds are they could have a lot of friends. Odds are that we'll be sweeping the rest of the woods to the north." He pointed towards the suspicious patch of woods on the ridge. "And even if we don't find any more in this side, it's inconceivable that they don't have anyone up in there."

The other sergeant hissed. "Damn HQ." He then turned to his troops. "No Sunday in the park after all, lads. The woods could have Biters after all, so stay sharp."

The other squad promptly dispersed and found cover, grumbling about officers and the on-going joke that was Army intelligence. 

"Glad to see you're not idiots after all." 

"Bad Intel, of course. All we heard was that you were doing a pro forma beating of the bushes then we'd take the village." 

"If only. They put some poor boys out to get shot so know we're here. I can only hope they don't get a clue as to how many." 

Nick and Judy, still on post, shared some looks to all the conversation. 

One of the other troops waved to the Sergeant to come over to see something from his better vantage point. When he did, he couldn't believe his eyes. "Is your whole company idiots!?" 

"Oh piss!" the other sergeant hissed. "Our company commander must have got his rank out of a cereal box. Even if the area was clear, no one should be standing out in the open with his thumb up his arse!" 

"How did you miss the clown show?"

"We were playing flankers and came across someone from your company that knew about how you'd spread out. Didn't mention the Biters though." The other sergeant pulled on an ear. "Figured we'd have to link up with you in some form or other, so peeled off from the company and here we are. The whole rest of the company is down there being stupid."

"Cheese! Now they're forming up, double file." 

"You've got to -!"

And he was interrupted by the awful buzz of an MG42 machinegun and the slower stutter of some other type. 

Nick and Judy brought their weapons up and braced themselves for anything that might threaten them from the woods while everyone else hunkered down, though glancing around as they dared to get a glimpse of where the fire was coming from. 

There was a second burst of fire, raking the bodies still in the open. And in that, revealed their location. 

"See that slash pile right in the middle in front of that stand of trees? The position is above and behind it, just inside the tree line."

"Pellets and piss! We gotta do something." The other sergeant snarled.

"Well, we can wait, regroup, and grind it out by brute force." The Sergeant glanced around. "Or." He waved everyone in closer. "They likely think our forces are all down there. But they don't know how much, and might think they've chopped us good, so would take a while to lick our wounds and make a proper go at them."

"Yeah..." Several members of both squads were beginning to see a plan forming. 

"So, if they suddenly see a bunch of bunnies popping up on top of them right away, they might thing there's a lot more of us. Like there have been more companies dropped off and only now coming through the woods after them." 

Judy though and guessed the rest hoped that instead of bringing up reinforcements, the enemy might instead withdraw to some fall back positions.

"We'll have to move fast." 

"Yet be careful, as there might be a few Biter patrols between here and there still."

There was another burst of machine gun fire, and a few futile rifle shots in response. It was easily five hundred yards and a modest incline between the machine guns and the main body of troops, and the chances at hitting a concealed target was pretty much non-existent, but everyone knew the impulse to try anyway.

"Okay, lets go with four elements between us, leap-frogging as fast as we dare. Old school skirmish advance. Say, fifty yard interval between elements." 

Nick and Judy were part of element two, and first had to run out about a hundred yards to get their interval. They were joined by the Corporal and PFC, and once in place, began the approach. Judy and the Corporal sidled forward as fast as they dared to the edge of visual range, say thirty yards or so, then found positions to cover Nick and the PFC who scampered ahead about thirty yards or so ahead to then find their own covering positions. 

They could occasional glimpse the other elements advancing as well, and in short order, were well up towards the enemy emplacement. 

Then, gun fire. The deep boom of the larger enemy rifles and the sharper snap of carbines in return. The first element must have made contact. The Corporal signaled that he and the PCF were going to approach from the apparent rear and that Nick and Judy should cover them in case any more enemies tried to join the action. 

Only a few nerve-wracking moments later the shooting stopped. The two veterans reappeared shortly thereafter, looking particularly grim. "Higgins got it." the PFC informed. 

"Another little four beast patrol, still poor dumb pups. Just got a little luckier than those first ones." The Corporal sighed.

One of the members of the third element whistled from a distance. The Corporal signed, four digits up then a slashing motion across the throat. An understanding nod, and then everyone was back to it.

There was an added air of determination now, with the loss and renewed sounds of machine gun fire off in the distance. 

Then they made the crest, though still deep in the woods. The two squads reformed into a battle line and advanced towards the road and the enemy action. Then with the break in the trees in sight, they saw a squad or more of enemy troops swarm towards them, unaware of their presence. The rabbits cut them down before they could get off a shot. 

However, there were more enemy troops coming up behind them and they fell back, presumably back across the road, and began blindly firing into the woods. 

For a moment, it was a stalemate, no one could see, even less get an aimed shot at anyone else. Nevertheless, any noise, real or imagined, would set off a new round of blind fire. Then one of the enemy tossed a grenade, one of the potato smashers towards the squads. It tangled with the trees well short; the blast was deafening but too far away to do any real harm. It did bring down a considerable shower of wet, melt water, what little snow was still up in the branches, and needles and small branches, leaving most of the Rabbits drenched.

Nick huffed, and dared to crawl up a bit closer to the road, and tossed his own captured noisemaker. The enemy troops must have been right up to the edge of their side of the woods, though his grenade didn't get any further in than theirs, the detonation brought yips of fear and pain, and persistent cries and whimpers after. 

Unlike the various small 'pineapple' or 'egg 'grenades, that relied on scattering metal fragments to maim or kill, the stick grenades simply had a larger explosive charge for a concussive blast. The effective area was smaller in most circumstances, but the over-pressure wasn't hampered by obstacles that could stop or deflect the spray of steel of those other types. 

But, as another rabbit demonstrated, a 'pineapple' grenade wasn't as easily snagged in tree branches, and fell deeper into the woods for its own telling effect. 

From the sounds of things, as far as their still ringing ears could tell, they had those survivors on the run. But it would be suicidal to just charge in blindly. They didn't know how many troops there were to start with and if any were lingering as a stronger defense or rear guard. 

In that small pause of consideration, Judy, glancing around to see if her squad mates were okay, caught a bit of motion off in the deeper woods. "Behind us!" She blurted out and began firing at the several enemy troops that were trying to sneak up on them. Barely had the squads adjusted to the new threat, there was a massive blast just to the north.

"In coming!" And everyone dropped as three more explosions ripped in to the woods around them. Then a pause. 

Judy and a couple others rose just enough to be able to react to any further attention from the new body of enemy soldier, but, by the sounds of things, they were beating a retreat to the north, likely to get around the squad and then head east. 

Not knowing what to expect with any more artillery, and not hearing any more machine gun fire, that goal seemed to have been achieved, at least indirectly, everyone warily took stock. 

Judy was unmarked, but was on the verge of collapse with all the exertion and tension of the last few minutes. That those few others around her looked in no better condition left her feeling not too guilty that she had somehow failed to keep up. 

She could hear bad news though, someone had been hit. She struggled to get up to help. She'd gotten some basic trauma care training, but she wasn't prepared for what she saw. 

A shell had dropped among several from the other squad and bits of bunny were splashed around. It was another rabbit a bit further on who was still alive but in distress. He didn't have any obvious major wounds, but seemed largely unresponsive and she noticed the bit of blood from his nose and ears and his very labored breath. 

"Blast injury. He missed the frags, but was still too close." One of the other Rabbits observed. "He's not gone yet, but it doesn't look good."

Then, as if to confirm that, the victim began to struggle, unable to breath, and then stopped. 

Shots rang out. One of the squad members had taken a peek out to the road and was trying to hit a couple enemy soldiers who were crossing the road several hundred yards further to the north, heading east, now down slope from the crest that they now held. If they were he ones who had retreated shortly before or some other troops, they couldn't tell. There were a couple shots in return, though to no effect.

"Had enough fun for one day." There was Nick, even in the simulation guise; Judy could see his sly smile. And the roughly wrapped bloody mess on his right arm. 

"Nick!?" 

"These simulations are getting really good in the worst way." He grimaced. "Caught a bullet when I tossed the grenade." Then turned to show his back, his daypack was shredded, as was some of his coat. "I think I picked up a few fragments from the shelling too. Stings a bit."

Judy was horrified. "Oh Glob I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have dragged you into this." She wanted to hug her Fox so, but was still too much into the role to allow herself. She glanced around her, the victims of the shelling still in view, and there were dead enemy troops scattered all too close by as well. Her sense of fatigue returned, now redoubled, and she clumsily sat down in the wet forest debris. Just too tired.

Nick plopped down besides Judy. "Weird though, the artillery. Just those first few rounds. Wonder what that was about? The sim giving us one last extra taste of things?" He suddenly stopped and seemed to be looking at something not there. "Oh. If you ask, the sim can pass on text info. Says the Company called up some artillery before they knew we'd made our little charge, saw our action, but couldn't call off the initial volley in time."

He wasn't intimidated by the setting of the sim and pulled Judy close with his good arm. "I can't say this has been fun, but it has been educational. I think everyone who yells for a military solution to things ought to get a good taste of this." Though he was grimacing from his injuries, he also flickered a look of dismay as he looked around at the simulated carnage. 

He rubbed his best bunny's shoulder. "And I hope you got your answers. That your Uncle was in it from the very beginning to the bitter end says a lot for his commitment. He was a real hero."

Nick pulled Judy's helmet off and nuzzled an ear. "So, you had enough? I think I can get a re-set so won't need to go to an aide station or worse."

Judy sighed. "I guess part of me pretty much expected all this. No real surprises. But. It's the difference of, like, reading and learning about a thing versus actually experiencing it. For now, I think I've had enough of freezing my toes off."

"And being wounded."

"And being wounded." She gripped her Fox closer. "I'll have to make it up to you somehow."

"Well, we could start with a cup of something warm and a major dose of 'not doing anything'." Nick's code for a long, languorous cuddle. 

Judy hummed at the prospect. "Simulation, 'terra cotta'."


End file.
